Lockheed A-12 Cygnus
The loss of Francis Gary Powers’ U-2A on 1 May 1960 underscored the fact that the U-2 was not as invulnerable to interception as originally hoped. If altitude was no longer a defense against Soviet air defenses, speed would be. Clarence “Kelly” Johnson, who had designed the U-2, was put to work with his legendary “Skunk Works” section of Lockheed to develop a very high-speed reconnaissance aircraft to supplement the U-2, named first the A-12—like the U-2’s use of the innocuous “utility” designation, the A-12 would use the outdated “attack” designation, though it carried no weapons.
Virtually everything about the A-12 had to be invented on the spot, and even the tools used in its production had to be specially built first. The A-12 was built of mostly light titanium, and design specifications were such that normal tools would damage the airframe. Emphasis was made on stealth and especially high speed: the A-12’s intended normal operating speed was in excess of Mach 3, which at that time had only been achieved with the rocket-powered X-15. To reach this speed, the aircraft would use J58 ramjets: once at altitude, the A-12 would be accelerated to the point that the airflow over its shock-cone intakes would be forced into the engines at above the speed of sound. At speed above Mach 3, the A-12 was more or less pulling itself through the air by brute force, with the engines only providing thirty percent of the thrust.
At these speeds, heat was a real problem, as the fuselage would rapidly heat up. Titanium sheds heat better than most metals, and the A-12 was designed with corrugated “skin” that would easily expand and contract with changing airspeed, heat, and altitude. Panels in the aircraft were deliberately designed to be loose on the ground and contract at altitude; fuel leaks on SR-71s were so commonplace that they were not remarked upon. Even the fuel and black paint scheme (actually a very dark blue) were placed and applied to diffuse heat away from leading edges. The A-12, and the short-lived YF-12 interceptor, lacked the extended chines of the later SR-71; these were used to enhance the aircraft’s stealth techniques to reflect away radar. No name was officially attached to the A-12: it was codenamed Project Oxcart (ironically); unoffically, the A-12 pilots referred to it as the Cygnus--Latin for swan, for the A-12's shape. It would be the SR-71 that would finally get an actual name, Blackbird.
The A-12s were built at the Skunk Works at Palmdale, California, but flown to Area 51 at Groom Lake, Nevada when completed. There, they undertook test flights around the area, leading to a rash of UFO sightings. Four aircraft crashed; any witnesses were informed that the aircraft were F-105 Thunderchiefs, and bribed to keep quiet. 13 A-12s would eventually be delivered to Groom Lake, one of which was a two-seat trainer.
Though the A-12 was intended for overflights of the Soviet Union, it would never fly there. Instead, three A-12s were deployed to Kadena, Okinawa under Operation Black Shield for missions over North Vietnam. These flights were very successful: at Mach 3.2 and 80,000 feet, the A-12s were practically invulnerable to North Vietnamese defenses--or Chinese, as the A-12's turn radius was such that it occasionally ended up over mainland China. The North Vietnamese still tried, occasionally firing a SA-2 Guideline (S-75 Dvina) SAM at an A-12. On 30 January 1967, the North Vietnamese made a concerted effort to bring down one of the A-12, barrage firing six SA-2s at the aircraft. None hit, though one missile detonated only 500 feet behind the A-12. Upon landing at Kadena, a tiny piece of shrapnel was found lodged in one of the A-12's wings. This would be the closest any enemy of the A-12/SR-71 ever got to hitting one.
A-12s would also be used during the Pueblo Crisis, operating over North Korea, but with the introduction of the slightly bigger and more capable SR-71, the A-12 was to be retired. All the surviving aircraft were retired in 1968, and put into storage; eventually, after the A-12 was declassified in the 1990s, they were distributed to various museums across the United States. 15 were built (including the two M-21 Tagboard D-21 drone launchers); nine remain today.
This is the granddaddy of all A-12/SR-71s: 60-6924, also known as "Article 121" to the CIA, the prototype A-12. Due to delays in the J58, it was initially equipped with J75 turbojets, and made an accidental first flight on 25 April 1962: during a high-speed taxi run, 60-6924 became airborne. It made its "official" first flight the next day. About a year later, 60-6924 was fitted with J58 engines and proved the concept by going over Mach 3. It was used only for testing and flew 322 flights before it was retired with the rest of the A-12 fleet in 1968. It would remain in storage at Palmdale for 20 years before it was placed on display in 1998 at Blackbird Airpark, at the front entrance to Plant 42, the home of the Skunk Works.
I misidentified this as a SR-71, but from the angle I was shooting from, I hope it's understandable. Blackbird Airpark was closed by the time we got to Palmdale late on a beautiful California day, which meant I had to get my picture over the fence. This angle still shows off the A-12/SR-71 series' otherworldly appearance.
EDIT (June 2023): A little better angle, taken in 2023 when we returned to Blackbird Airpark.
Lockheed A-12 Cygnus
The loss of Francis Gary Powers’ U-2A on 1 May 1960 underscored the fact that the U-2 was not as invulnerable to interception as originally hoped. If altitude was no longer a defense against Soviet air defenses, speed would be. Clarence “Kelly” Johnson, who had designed the U-2, was put to work with his legendary “Skunk Works” section of Lockheed to develop a very high-speed reconnaissance aircraft to supplement the U-2, named first the A-12—like the U-2’s use of the innocuous “utility” designation, the A-12 would use the outdated “attack” designation, though it carried no weapons.
Virtually everything about the A-12 had to be invented on the spot, and even the tools used in its production had to be specially built first. The A-12 was built of mostly light titanium, and design specifications were such that normal tools would damage the airframe. Emphasis was made on stealth and especially high speed: the A-12’s intended normal operating speed was in excess of Mach 3, which at that time had only been achieved with the rocket-powered X-15. To reach this speed, the aircraft would use J58 ramjets: once at altitude, the A-12 would be accelerated to the point that the airflow over its shock-cone intakes would be forced into the engines at above the speed of sound. At speed above Mach 3, the A-12 was more or less pulling itself through the air by brute force, with the engines only providing thirty percent of the thrust.
At these speeds, heat was a real problem, as the fuselage would rapidly heat up. Titanium sheds heat better than most metals, and the A-12 was designed with corrugated “skin” that would easily expand and contract with changing airspeed, heat, and altitude. Panels in the aircraft were deliberately designed to be loose on the ground and contract at altitude; fuel leaks on SR-71s were so commonplace that they were not remarked upon. Even the fuel and black paint scheme (actually a very dark blue) were placed and applied to diffuse heat away from leading edges. The A-12, and the short-lived YF-12 interceptor, lacked the extended chines of the later SR-71; these were used to enhance the aircraft’s stealth techniques to reflect away radar. No name was officially attached to the A-12: it was codenamed Project Oxcart (ironically); unoffically, the A-12 pilots referred to it as the Cygnus--Latin for swan, for the A-12's shape. It would be the SR-71 that would finally get an actual name, Blackbird.
The A-12s were built at the Skunk Works at Palmdale, California, but flown to Area 51 at Groom Lake, Nevada when completed. There, they undertook test flights around the area, leading to a rash of UFO sightings. Four aircraft crashed; any witnesses were informed that the aircraft were F-105 Thunderchiefs, and bribed to keep quiet. 13 A-12s would eventually be delivered to Groom Lake, one of which was a two-seat trainer.
Though the A-12 was intended for overflights of the Soviet Union, it would never fly there. Instead, three A-12s were deployed to Kadena, Okinawa under Operation Black Shield for missions over North Vietnam. These flights were very successful: at Mach 3.2 and 80,000 feet, the A-12s were practically invulnerable to North Vietnamese defenses--or Chinese, as the A-12's turn radius was such that it occasionally ended up over mainland China. The North Vietnamese still tried, occasionally firing a SA-2 Guideline (S-75 Dvina) SAM at an A-12. On 30 January 1967, the North Vietnamese made a concerted effort to bring down one of the A-12, barrage firing six SA-2s at the aircraft. None hit, though one missile detonated only 500 feet behind the A-12. Upon landing at Kadena, a tiny piece of shrapnel was found lodged in one of the A-12's wings. This would be the closest any enemy of the A-12/SR-71 ever got to hitting one.
A-12s would also be used during the Pueblo Crisis, operating over North Korea, but with the introduction of the slightly bigger and more capable SR-71, the A-12 was to be retired. All the surviving aircraft were retired in 1968, and put into storage; eventually, after the A-12 was declassified in the 1990s, they were distributed to various museums across the United States. 15 were built (including the two M-21 Tagboard D-21 drone launchers); nine remain today.
This is the granddaddy of all A-12/SR-71s: 60-6924, also known as "Article 121" to the CIA, the prototype A-12. Due to delays in the J58, it was initially equipped with J75 turbojets, and made an accidental first flight on 25 April 1962: during a high-speed taxi run, 60-6924 became airborne. It made its "official" first flight the next day. About a year later, 60-6924 was fitted with J58 engines and proved the concept by going over Mach 3. It was used only for testing and flew 322 flights before it was retired with the rest of the A-12 fleet in 1968. It would remain in storage at Palmdale for 20 years before it was placed on display in 1998 at Blackbird Airpark, at the front entrance to Plant 42, the home of the Skunk Works.
I misidentified this as a SR-71, but from the angle I was shooting from, I hope it's understandable. Blackbird Airpark was closed by the time we got to Palmdale late on a beautiful California day, which meant I had to get my picture over the fence. This angle still shows off the A-12/SR-71 series' otherworldly appearance.
EDIT (June 2023): A little better angle, taken in 2023 when we returned to Blackbird Airpark.